program. obama finally gets his man. the u.s. senate confirms chuck hagel. what increased demand for cocoanuts has failed to bear fruit for indonesia as farmers. pope benedict xvi is making his final appearance in st. peter's square as the roman catholic pope -- his final appearance in at st. peter's square. he is the first pope in 600 years to resign. >> in these recent months, i felt my weakening strength. i prayed and asked for in light meant to make the right decision for the good of the church. >> barbara, amid the huge outpouring of affection from the faithful gathered there. >> absolutely. a lot of people have turned out to say goodbye to pope benedict xvi. 50,000 tickets were sold. it is more likely that there are about 150,000 people around the vatican and the main road that leads to it. people are still walking towards st. peter's square, but they're being redirected to other parts around the square where there are big screens where they can watch the pope. nothing compared to the figures of the people we saw for the funeral of john paul back in 2005. that was a funeral and

job may be what chuck hagel needs tonight. if he is to become the secretary of defense. chief congressional correspondent mike emanuel tells us hagel's confirmation hearing left doubters with plenty of questions. >> a day after bruising confirmation hearing, the former colleagues say the performance did not help his cause and did not win them over. >> i don't intend to vote for him in the committee or on the senate floor. there were so many inconsistencies yesterday, plained by well, i'd have to look at the whole context of what i said at the time. >> that brings the number of republican nos to 12 including richard burke, dan coates, john cornyn, cruz, inhof, kirk, rubio, pat roberts, viter and wicker. he incorrected stated that president obama's policy on the iran nuclear program. >> i just been handed a note that i, i misspoke and said i supported the president's position on containment. if i said that, meant to say that i obviously, his position on containment we don't have a position on containment. >> we do have a position on containment that we do not favor containment.

next, senators rough up chuck hagel during his confirmation hearing. a senior lawmaker is "outfront" to explain why he's voting against chuck hagel. and chuck grassley implies the video games, not guns, are the reasons for america's mass shootings. what role did the donations he received from the nra play? and another super bowl ad being called racist. we'll show you the ad. it's a near and dear to our heart topic. let's go "outfront." >>> and we begin right now, though, with breaking news. you are looking at pictures right now of mexico city. this is a live shot that you're watching from our affiliate, forotv. right now, they're reporting that five people are dead and at least 75 are injured. there was an explosion at the offices of mexico's state-run pemex oil company. there are at least 30 people still trapped in the building. it's up clear right now what caused that explosion. we are trying to figure that out for you. we will monitor that, and as we get more information, we'll bring it to you throughout the hour. and a good evening to all of you tonight. i'm erin burnett. "outfr

in the tent by the white house to make chuck hagel the secretary of defense he felt to vote shorter sentences decided to push for more time to find out more about him. as a mole. well those who blocked the vote on chuck hagel nomination this thursday know very well that he will eventually be confirmed as defense secretary there are enough votes in the senate to confirm him but the stalling of the vote together with the humiliating treatment that the senators gave chuck hagel two weeks ago at his confirmation hearing this whole process is seen as a message all by itself those lawmakers showed that they could crush anyone who would allow themselves to dissent from washington's core foreign policy beliefs chuck hagel remarks at the confirmation hearing disappointed even his supporters during the hearing which to me seemed like an imposition on mr haygood had to backtrack on many of the statements he had made before including that war with iran should not be an option including his criticism of israel's actions and some other foreign policy views that he had expressed as a senator so th

previous statements at the confirmation hearing chuck hagel made it clear he will act in accordance with white house policies if his kind of don't say is approved and also he's going to check out listen to the session which brought some heated discussion but little hope of change. chuck hagel bent backwards to show how mainstream his views are the senators kept accusing him of not being mainstream enough and they kept using the word mainstream over and over again during this hearing chuck hagel has walked back on a number of positions he had taken earlier he kept apologizing again and again and chuck hagel went to great lengths to show that he is in no way going to challenge washington's core foreign policy beliefs as one of the senators put it it was quite an exhausting hearing considering the senators were asking almost the same questions and roughly eighty percent of them had to do with chuck hagel previous statements on israel and iran there was so much mentioning of israel that at some point they were confirming him as secretary of defense for israel i couldn't count how many t

answer the question senator hagel. >> the question is were you right or wrong. >> coming up. president obama nominee to be secretary of defense faces sharp and sometimes angry questioning special freely his friend. >> investigation reveals the true price of some local school bond. billions of dollar in debt that is taking decade to repay. >> and which cancer screenings should you skip? sh[ woman ] my boyfriend and i were going on vacation, so i used my citi thankyou card to pick up some accessories. a new belt. some nylons. and what girl wouldn't need new shoes? and with all the points i've been earning, i was able to get us a flight to our favorite climbing spot, even on a holiday weekend. ♪ things are definitely... looking up. [ male announcer ] with no blackout dates, you can use your citi thankyou points to travel whenever you want. visit citi.com/thankyoucards to apply. susdz. >> fiery day on the hill. hagel purple heart recipient in vietnam and former senator to be nominated secretary of defense at the confirmation hearings. his former colleague met him with a barrag

but watched chuck hagel's confirmation hearing you probably thought the defense secretary was in charge of israel or the surge. but he is not. he is in charge of much more important things, chuck hagel, coming up. lock. lock. command is locked. five seconds. three, two, one. standing by for capture. the most innovative software on the planet... dragon is captured. is connecting today's leading companies to places beyond it. siemens. answers. you name it...i've hooked it. but there's one... one that's always eluded me. thought i had it in the blizzard of '93. ha! never even came close. sometimes, i actually think it's mocking me. [ engine revs ] what?! quattro!!!!! ♪ the words are going this way-there's no way. oh, the lights came on. isn't technology supposed to make life easier? at chase we're pioneering innovations that make banking simple. deposit a check with a photo. pay someone with an email. and bank seamlessly with our award-winning mobile app. take a step forward... and chase what matters. >>> the obama administration, health care policy making sure that pretty much ev

hagel gets downright offensive. and lions and tigers and bears, oh my, "early today" starts right now. >> announcer: this is "early today" for friday, february 1st, 2013. >>> good morning, i'm mara schiavocampo. super bowl weekend is here as fans of both the baltimore ravens and the san francisco 49ers descend upon new orleans, the town known for its lavish matters is gearing up for one of its biggest parties ever. nbc's jay gray is live for the latest. >> reporter: good morning, mara. from outside the beautiful superdome lit up in new orleans. look, depending on your perspective, a lot of people either ending their party or continuing into new orleans. the perfect city to hold such a big bash. a lot of people looking forward to the game. but as you talked about, a lot of people looking forward to a lot of things. for many, it's the ads that air on super sunday. we have a sneak peek of some you'll see. >> hey, son, have fun tonight. ♪ ♪ >> you know what this room needs? a smile. who wants to come with i? ♪ traveling along there's a song that we're singing come on get happy ♪ >

, thank you for joining us. >>> if you are not around here but watched chuck hagel's confirmation hearing you probably thought the defense secretary was in charge of israel or the surge. but he is not. he is in charge of much more important things, chuck hagel, coming up. dead battery, need a tow or lock your keys in the car, geico's emergency roadside assistance is there 24/7. oh dear, i got a flat tire. hmmm. uh... yeah, can you find a take where it's a bit more dramatic on that last line, yeah? yeah i got it right here. someone help me!!! i have a flat tire!!! well it's good... good for me. what do you think? geico. fifteen minutes could save you fifteen percent or more on car insurance. olaf gets great rewards for his small business! pizza! [ garth ] olaf's small business earns 2% cash back on every purchase, every day! helium delivery. put it on my spark card! [ pop! ] [ garth ] why settle for less? great businesses deserve great rewards! awesome!!! [ male announcer ] the spark business card from capital one. choose unlimited rewards with 2% cash back or double miles on every purchas

comes "outfront" to explain why he's voting against hagel. >> and chuck grassley implies video games and not guns are the reason for america's mass shootings. what donations that he received from the nra play? >> and another commercial being called racist. i'll show you the ad and let you decide. let's go "outfront." >>> not so friendly fire on capitol hill. an incredibly long day of tough questions for president obama's defense secretary nominee chuck hagel. one of the most contentious moments came when senator john mccain asked whether the 2007 surge troop in iraq was successful. >> the question is, were you right or wroeng? that's a pretty straightforward question. i would like you to answer whether you are right or wrong and then you are free to elaborate. >> well, i'm not going to give you a yes or no answer on a lot of things. >> let the record show that you refuse to answer that question. now, please go ahead. >> well, if you would like me to explain why -- >> no, i actually would like an answer. yes or no. >> well, i'm not going to give you a yes or no. >> another hot topic a

the u.s. senate. the ticked-off hagel, is it just for show? the basic unfairness of vietnam itself that some went and some didn't? is it about lyndon johnson's inability to win the war or end it? what is it about john mccain that seems to excite those who know nothing about vietnam. well tonight we dig into the deep well of resentment burning in john mccain's patriotic heart. a resentment not against the north vietnamese who imprisoned and tortured him, not against george w. bush and his political henchmen who tried to stain mccain's reputation. but just like he did, in the same army of america's long nightmare in vietnam. i'm joined by david corn with "mother jones" and joy reed with the grio. i have to tell you i'm convinced we're watching a flashback. watch this, here's senator john mccain, he did a long, angry wind-up before he launched into his first so-called question. it was really an indictment for former senate colleague and former friend and fellow vietnam veteran, chuck hagel. it included put-downs, as well as reference does vietnam. let's listen. >> in january of 2007,

hagel made it clear he will act in accordance with white house policies his candidacy is approved or he's going to listen to the session which brought some heated discussion but little hope of change. chuck hagel bent backwards to show how mainstream his views are the senators kept accusing him of not being mainstream enough and they kept using the word mainstream over and over again during this hearing chuck hagel has walked back on a number of positions he had taken earlier he kept apologizing again and again and chuck hagel went to great lengths to show that he is in no way going to challenge washington's core foreign policy beliefs as one of the senators put it it was quite an exhausting hearing considering the senators were asking almost the same questions and roughly eighty percent of them had to do with chuck hagel previous statements on israel and iran there was so much mentioning of israel that at some point they were confirming him as secretary of defense for israel i couldn't count how many times he said all options are on the table with regards to iran again and again

here but watched chuck hagel's confirmation hearing you probably thought the defense secretary was in charge of israel or the surge. but he is not. he is in charge of much more important things, chuck hagel, coming up. lock. lock. command is locked. five seconds. three, two, one. standing by for capture. the most innovative software on the planet... dragon is captured. is connecting today's leading companies to places beyond it. siemens. answers. you name it...i've hooked it. but there's one... one that's always eluded me. thought i had it in the blizzard of '93. ha! never even came close. sometimes, i actually think it's mocking me. [ engine revs ] what?! quattro!!!!! ♪ >>> the obama administration, health care policy making sure that pretty much every woman has access to contraception. but what happens if you work for a religious organization? then it gets a little more complicated. we will explain the new rules next. hey, it's sara. i'm going pro. i've been using crest pro-health for a week. my dentist said it was gonna help transform my mouth. [ male announcer ] go pro. for a

defense secretary. farmer senator chuck hagel and got tough questions from vietnam veteran and fellow republican. john mccain asking hagel to admit he was wrong when he opposed the surge to the 30,000 troops to iraq in 2007. >> if you would like me to explain. >> i'd like an answer. yes or no. >> i'm not going to give you a question or no. it's par mu complicated than. thatly defer that judgment to history. >> history already made a judgment on the surge and you are on the wrong side of it. >> shepard: democrats defended him. >> i never had the pleasure of serving with you, which i wish i would have. we had a great conversation. you bring a fresh, breath of fresh air, truly a breath of fresh air to the process. >> if confirms senator hagel will be the first vietnam veteran and first enlisted soldier of any kind to be the defense secretary. >> he asked him to look at the entire record. mike emanuel on capitol hill tonight and some comments are getting more attention tonight. >> that is right. senator chuck hagel had a lot to defend and those close to him say it was a long day an

capitol hill's been shaken by a major bipartisan clash over the new defense secretary chuck hagel was narrowly approved by the senate after coming under fire from fellow republicans for past criticism of the iraq war and the jewish lobby with some believing he could also be too soft on iran reports. chuck hagel was confirmed by the senate fifty eight votes for forty one vote against a narrow vote as you can see but he can find in louisville all that apologizing and repenting behind and he had to do a lot of that to get the job to go has been working very hard to tailor his views so as to please congress as a senator chuck hagel allowed himself to oppose the surge in iraq or to criticize israel's policies to oppose seeing war with iran as an option but as the president's nominee for the defense secretary position he backtracked on much of what he had said before and did it as as even his supporters noted in a rather clumsy way but in a way that showed how much he wanted the job and the whole confirmation process including the attack campaign against him including the filibuster ten

probably one of the very first second-determine nominations that president obama announced. chuck hagel ended up not being in brussels today. he has not become the new defense secretary yet because republicans in the senate have filibustered his nomination. a cabinet nomination has never, ever in the history of the united states been filibustered before. but these republicans in this congress and our time decided that they would do this unprecedented thing to chuck hagel. one of the major items on next week's news calendar is that the republicans are expected to finally relent and allow chuck hagel to be confirmed. but jane mayer published something at the new yorker today that made headlines everywhere today because she turned up the way republicans have been operating in washington at the time they have been trying to stop him. to be clear, even with the unprecedented filibuster, everybody knows that chuck hagel is going to be confirmed as defense secretary. democrats have a majority in the senate. hagel has the support of every single democrat in the senate and he has the support of

chuck hagel narrowly wins u.s. senate approval to become the new defense secretary but his policies draw fire from capitol hill especially among his own sello republicans. italy upsets the austerity apple cart out voters say no to more cuts but leave parliament in turmoil raising fears that the country's political crisis will negatively impact the eurozone. and how's this for a minor traffic offense the shocking video posted by a russian couple of their eight year old daughter driving and dangerous beats. live from our studios in moscow you're watching r t with me and use the now way it's good to have you with us our top story this hour chuck hagel has been narrowly approved by the u.s. senate as the new defense secretary but he came under fire from fellow republicans for his past criticism of the iraq war and the israeli lobby with some believing he could also be too soft on iran nature can now on the clash on capitol hill. chuck hagel was confirmed by the senate fifty eight votes for forty one vote against a narrow vote as you can see but he can find in louisville all that apologi

face of the pentagon chuck hagel he allowed himself to say right attacking iran is a stupid idea and i believe you also called for direct negotiations do you think we could see direct negotiations any time soon with chuck hagel in ministration well i think that that former senator hagel has taken courageous positions on iran on a range of issues and i admire them and respect them and the concern i have is that he is being nominated for the wrong job to carry out those positions his defense secretary if he is a if he is if he's approved to be as defense secretary he will not be the person in charge of creating or implementing strategies of iran or any other foreign policy issue. he will be he will be at the defense department doing quintessentially defense secretary things in this environment which is to cut the budget and try to keep the united states out of another war now that peace try to keep the united states out of another war could have impact here but the problem is he what he could potentially try to keep united states out of another war without being able to either to o

lindsay graham believes the senate should hold up the confirmation ofs of john brennan an chuck hagel until the white house releases more information on the deadly benghazi for attack. senator graham wants to know exactly what the president was doing that tragic night. >> i don't think we should allow brennan to go forward for the c.i.a. director ship, hagel to be confirmed to secretary of defense secretary of defense. did the president ever pick up the phone and call anyone to help these folks? >> what does this mean? joining us, a former media spokesperson for president george w. bush and joe mansion a democrat. mercedes and chris, welcome. mercedes, let me start with you. what does this mean if the senator is saying we're going to hold up these critical nominations until we find out about the president's activity that night? >> we've been waiting for months from the white house to figure out what happened in ban gaza. when you look at what susan rice mentioned on benghazi with her talking points, that basically saying that this was due to a protest. we know that wasn't the case. we

republican colleagues would leave the nation without -- >> and that hagel hostage. the filibuster is a valentine's day spoiler for departing secretary leon panetta. >> the second best valentine's present would be to allow sylvia and i to get the hell out of town. >> good day. i'm andrea mitchell life in washington. the national rifle association has now launched a counter offensive against the president's emotional appeal at the state of the union. to put an end to gun violence. in a column published yesterday on a conservative web blog wayne lapierre from the nra announced a four-year communications and resistance movement, his words, to block what he calls a siege from the enemies of the second amendment. in washington to hear the president's appeal we'll be talking to mark kelly moments from now, but, first, to that breaking muse out of south africa rsh olympic sprinter oscar pistorius made sporting history by becoming the first track athlete double amputee to compete in the games, but today the blade runner as he is known, is charged with murder after his girlfriend was fatally sho

military roles that have endorsed chuck hagel strongly and enthusiastically. men and women who served in both democratic and republican administrations. among them, bob gates, william cohen, madeleine albright, bill perry, thomas pickering. these are women who have -- men and women who devoted themselves to protecting the united states. they've done it with extraordinary energy and effectiveliness. in this list of our secretaries defense that will rank as the best we've ever had. they have absolute confidence that chuck hagel can and should do this job. you have in this list ambassadors who have handled the delicate, difficult issues involving international diplomacy. you have several ambassadors who have been ambassadors to the state of israel who strongly support senator hagel. all these individuals know him, they know perhaps as well if not better than many of my colleagues and myself the threats, the dangers and opportunities that face this country and they are strongly supporting chuck hagel. in fact, they have concluded, in a letter, that he is uniquely qualified to meet the challe

military chief faces his latest battle today coming up here on r t we report on where chuck hagel stands after being told what hung out to dry in a bitter partisan standoff. german peace activists are outraged by increasing their sales to gulf countries saying bolin is ignoring the dubious human rights records of its client supreme court opinion on the story coming up for you shortly . for now though the european union says there will be no relief and sanctions on offer when iran holds major talks with world powers in kazakhstan. where u.s. officials had suggested could be a let up in restrictions if it limits enrichment activities and closes one of its nuclear sites iran is currently bending under severe trade and military sanctions amid accusations is developing a nuclear bomb former washington advisor told says the measures have nothing to do with atomic fears. the iranians causation as they are and for five thousand years certainly longer than questions of nations or any western civilizations and they're not suicidal. they know that's where the nuclear weapons they would be obliterat

and he westergren chief sponsor around capitol hill with some republicans worried chuck hagel is foreign policy maybe. major world powers weight training response to ease sanctions in return for terror around hold on a second level nuclear talks begin in kazakhstan. and italy reaches an economic and political country's crucial general election if there's no clear winner the population massively rejecting austerity policies. news and lots more twenty four hours a day without me. the pentagon is bracing for change chuck hagel will be sworn in as the new u.s. defense secretary later on wednesday he's come under fire from fellow republicans for past criticism of the iraq war and the jewish lobby some believing he could also be too soft on iran but president obama firmly believes he's the right man for the job he's going to. chuck hagel was confirmed by the senate fifty eight votes for forty one vote against a narrow vote as you can see but he can find in louisville all that apologizing and repenting behind and he had to do a lot of that to get the job has been working very hard to ta